Police report names Vols players in investigation

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee linebacker A.J. Johnson and cornerback Michael Williams have been identified as subjects of a rape investigation, according to a Knoxville Police report released Tuesday.

Police say no charges have been filed in the investigation of the incident at a Knoxville apartment. The university suspended Johnson and Williams on Monday from all team-related activities.

The report states that Knoxville police investigator Tim Riddle spoke to two 19-year-old women on Sunday at the University of Tennessee Medical Center at about 4:30 a.m. One woman said Johnson and Williams raped her at the apartment complex. A second woman said she was sexually assaulted by Williams at the same location.

DeBusk said that the woman who said she was sexually assaulted “has decided not to prosecute at this time,” but that the other wanted to press charges. DeBusk said the woman who said she was raped is a Tennessee student. He said the other woman is from out of state and has returned home.

The Associated Press doesn’t name people who say they have been raped or sexually assaulted.

DeBusk said police have been “in constant contact” with the District Attorney’s office since Sunday. He declined to give a timetable on when a decision might be reached on whether to file charges in the case. DeBusk said both players and the woman who wanted to press charges have hired attorneys, but he wouldn’t release the lawyers’ names.

Johnson, a linebacker and four-year starter, ranks second in the Southeastern Conference with 101 total tackles and leads the conference with 10.1 tackles per game. Johnson has produced over 100 tackles each of the last three seasons, and his 425 career tackles rank second in school history.

The senior from Gainesville, Georgia, was a first-team all-SEC selection last season and has been one of Tennessee’s most popular players the last few years for his productive performance and exuberant personality on the field.

Williams, a sophomore cornerback from Laurel, Maryland, has started five of Tennessee’s 10 games. He has made 23 tackles. He’s a two-sport athlete who also competed on Tennessee’s track team last year.

Tennessee (5-5, 2-4 SEC) hosts No. 19 Missouri (8-2, 5-1) on Saturday. The Volunteers are one win away from becoming bowl eligible for the first time since 2010.